three things: april 2018

05/04/2018

So, April was in like a lion – two snowstorms! – and out like a lamb. Temps finally hit 80F on Monday, and wowza! I forgot what warm sunshine felt like on bare skin. #sunshinegivesmelife

Here are last month’s highlights.

1 – all the biking

With 24 days in the saddle, April was the month of the bike. The workouts weren’t long – no more than 80 minutes – but wowza… did they pack a punch, especially because of the compounding fatigue.

While many ended with me near puking and cursing coach, many also ended with me thinking, damn, I can’t believe I hit those watts – or, these watts cannot be real. Case in point: the first workout in the block that I read completely wrong. There’s a big difference between 30 seconds rest and four minutes + 30 seconds rest!

Anyway, it was a fantastic change-up from my typical longer intervals. And t got me well out of my comfort zone. There’s something to be said for embracing the discomfort! It can be pretty powerful when you do. It also taught me that I’m capable of far more than I think – but that’s true of all of us. We limit ourselves based on the stories we tell ourselves. So let’s start telling ourselves different stories!

Here’s to testing all that bike fitness next week at a Tuesday Night Time Trial!

one of April’s bike workouts.

2 – plant love 

I’ve turned into a plant lady. Maybe it was an attempt to will spring’s arrival in wintry April? Or to warm up our house into a home? Either way, I’m not mad about it because like sunshine, greenery gives me life. (Nick thinks I’m nuts.) Aside from the fact that plants are beautiful, they’re also smart. Who knew?!

Current favorites: pilea, or the Chinese money plant, all the succulents, and a fiddle fig tree. Next purchase: a monster monstera because Minnesota needs more of the tropics.

And current favorite plant shops in MPLSTP: Tangletown Gardens and Tonkadale. I could go to each daily, er weekly!, and come home with all the green goodness. Next up to visit: Mother – this place looks amazing.

Chinese money plant on the left, Convivial Production planter on the right.

3 – quip

As much as I loathe marketing + advertising, sometimes I’m a sucker for it. Case in point: quip toothbrushes. I’d read about them in the Skimm and heard about them on a few podcasts, so checked them out – and then bought two. But I swear it wasn’t just because of advertising! We actually needed new toothbrushes because our Sonicares weren’t cutting it. And since our new place currently only has one bathroom with limited counter space, we didn’t want the Sonicare and cord clutter.

While the quip brushes took a bit of getting used to – both the vibration speed and handle comfort (perhaps because I was so used to my Sonicare) – they’ve turned out to be great toothbrushes. Here’s what I love about quip:

  • They’re really pretty – the Mac of toothbrushes! Um, rose gold?! Swoon.
  • They’re battery powered – no cords! 
  • They have a timer – 30 seconds for each top, bottom, front and back, for two minutes total
  • They’re subscription based – new heads, toothpaste + batteries delivered right to your door every three months. (We have the couple set.)
A recent qiup refill set – two tubes each of full-size and travel toothpaste + two new brush heads.

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